Christ on the Road to Calvary
Artist:
Francesco Salvator Fontebasso
(Italian, 1707 - 1769)
Culture: Italian
Date: ca. 1750
Place made:Venice, Italy
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
canvas: 50 x 67 1/2 in. (127 x 171.5 cm)
framed: 58 x 75 1/2 in. (147.3 x 191.8 cm)
Credit Line: Purchased with funds provided by the Grace Fortner Rider Fund
Object number: 85.46
Signed: Unsigned
Provenance: sold by Verner Amells, Stockholm, to Newhouse Galleries; sold by Newhouse Galleries, New York, to San Antonio Museum of Art, 1985
Label Text
Christ on the Road to Calvary shows Fontebasso at the height of his form, combining elements from dramatic and decorative styles in a single painting. This is one of a handful of paintings by the artist in North American collections.
Few historical facts survive about Fontebasso's life. He was born around 1709 in Venice and studied painting. During his formative years, Fontebasso was strongly influenced by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, whose art was at the center of resurgence of Venitian painting in the eighteenth-century. Fontebasso worked primarily as a muralist on large wall and ceiling decorations for churches and palaces in and around Venice. He journeyed to St. Petersburg for two years at the request of Catherine the Great where he decorated several palaces with his large compositions. One year before his death in 1769, he was elected president of the Venetian Academy.
Few historical facts survive about Fontebasso's life. He was born around 1709 in Venice and studied painting. During his formative years, Fontebasso was strongly influenced by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, whose art was at the center of resurgence of Venitian painting in the eighteenth-century. Fontebasso worked primarily as a muralist on large wall and ceiling decorations for churches and palaces in and around Venice. He journeyed to St. Petersburg for two years at the request of Catherine the Great where he decorated several palaces with his large compositions. One year before his death in 1769, he was elected president of the Venetian Academy.
Not on view
The San Antonio Museum of Art is in the process of digitizing its permanent collection. This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect SAMA's complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of such records is ongoing.
This resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.
